Groveland Man Killed In HWY 120 Crash

CHP Image

Groveland, CA – One person died at the scene of a head-on crash on HWY 120 this morning while another was flown to Modesto suffering serious injuries – the CHP points to distracted driving as the cause.

It was around 10:42 a.m. on Friday when two-vehicles smashed head-on east of Smith Station Road sending one off the roadway and the other blocked both lanes of travel literally shutting down the roadway, as earlier reported here. The CHP is not releasing the name of an 82-year-old Groveland man who was killed in the crash pending notification of family.

The other driver was 43 year old Ioan Tudosa from San Francisco. The CHP reports he was driving a 2018 Nissan Versa, westbound the highway while the Groveland resident was driving a 1990 Acura Integra, eastbound. Due to being distracted, CHP spokesperson Faustino Pulido details that Tudosa’s car crossed over the double-yellow lines and crashed head-on into the Acura. Tudosa vehicle came to rest on its wheels on the north shoulder and the Acura was blocking both lanes of traffic.

Both vehicles had major front end damage. The Groveland man was pronounced dead at the scene, Tudosa sustained major injuries and flown to Doctor’s Medical Center in Modesto. The investigation is ongoing, but neither drug and/or alcohol use is believed to have played a role in the collision.